How do you set 400 ISO color film?

How do you set 400 ISO color film?

  • 200

    Votes: 7 6.1%

  • 250

    Votes: 10 8.8%

  • 320

    Votes: 29 25.4%

  • 400

    Votes: 63 55.3%

  • 500

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • 640

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • 800

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • Something else

    Votes: 2 1.8%
  • Total voters
    114
  • Poll closed .
If I am shooting people I will actually underexpose because white skin is almost 2 stops lighter than neutral grey. I usually set the film at the rated ISO but addapt compensation to suit situation.
 
Roger Hicks said:
ISO speeds are for the most part remarkably accurate.
Click to expand...

Almost always I use the box speed. For most subjects, it works for me.

However, I will occasionally expose 400 as if it were 800 when doing things like the Las Vegas Strip where there are highlights with a lot of detail and most of the scene is darker. This helps blowing out highlights when using the GIII in auto mode.
 
dmr said:
Almost always I use the box speed. For most subjects, it works for me.

However, I will occasionally expose 400 as if it were 800 when doing things like the Las Vegas Strip where there are highlights with a lot of detail and most of the scene is darker. This helps blowing out highlights when using the GIII in auto mode.
Click to expand...

Very true! But of course this is a metering question (and therefore an entirely valid answer to the original query) rather than an ISO speed question.

I suppose that one could spot-meter the lights and give (say) 4 stops more but this might be difficult...

The thing is, it's amazing how many people don't realize that ISO speeds won't work, every time, on every meter, for every camera, if you just set them blindly.

In fact I'd add that if I'm using my Pentax SV (with a 'lazy' shutter) I can set ISO 400 as 800, but with my wife's 35/5.6 Apo Grandagon on the Alpa I need to set 200 just to get the effect of 400 -- because, I think, of extra-high shutter efficency on the tiny absolute aperture.

Cheers,

R.
 
Roger Hicks said:
But of course this is a metering question (and therefore an entirely valid answer to the original query) rather than an ISO speed question.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is not an issue of questioning the film speed, it's adjusting the exposure, overcoming a "feature" of the averaging meter in the camera.

I regard the ISO film speed to be one of the more consistent variables in the whole exposure thing. Things like light and how the meter behaves appear to be far less precise. (Grabbing whip and looking for dead horse to beat ...) I sure wish there were available some kind of an accurate standard light source, something that could be used to check the accuracy of exposure meters!
 
Depending on the roll, if it's an NC and need sometimes a bit more saturated colours I just underexpose half stop (so it's iso 560, I guess), otherwise i let it at 400. I know some say that film rolls should be overexposed but to tell the truth I never understood why. Could you explain? Why looking for paler colours? Or there's something else to consider? Let me know thanks
 
italy74 said:
Depending on the roll, if it's an NC and need sometimes a bit more saturated colours I just underexpose half stop (so it's iso 560, I guess), otherwise i let it at 400. I know some say that film rolls should be overexposed but to tell the truth I never understood why. Could you explain? Why looking for paler colours? Or there's something else to consider? Let me know thanks
Click to expand...

Dear Dino,

With neg film, you'll normally get less saturation by underexposing the neg; it's the print that needs to be underexposed, preferably with a generously exposed negative. Sure, underexposing slides will give more saturation (and overexposing will give weaker colours) but if you get pale prints from overexposed negs it just shows that the auto printer isn't doing its job properly.

Cheers,

Roger
 
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